Campaign ribbon bar holder



May 13, 1958 J. D. KIRKBRIDE 2,834,129

CAMPAIGN RIBBON BAR HOLDER Filed Dec. 23, 1954 2 SheetsSheet 1 INVEN TOR. uncze a. .e/aeeems,

y 3 J. D. KIRKBRIDE CAMPAIGN RIBBON BAR HOLDER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed D60. 23, 1954 INVENTOR. eese/0s,

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5972M flan/dam 4 7 Tale/V5345 2,834,129 CAMPAIGN RIBBON BAR HOLDER Jack D. Kirkbride, Lincoln, Nebr.

Application December 23, 1954, Serial No. 477,275

1 Claim. (CI. 40-15) This invention relates to a campaign ribbon bar holder and guide and has for its primary object to locate campaign ribbons in properly spaced parallel relation according to the regulations of the service of which the user is a member.

Another object is to facilitate the rapid transfer of a group of campaign ribbons from one uniform to another.

A further object is to enable the transfer to be made with but a minimum of effort and to assure the proper spacing of the ribbon bars.

The above and other objects may be attained by employing this invention which embodies among its features a sheet of relatively stiff transparent material having indentatlons therein defining locators for guiding prongs carried by ribbon bars and thrust through said plate and selected portions of a military uniform, a clamp plate, and safety buttons carried by the clamp plate and releasably engaging selected prongs for retaining a selected area of the uniform between the sheet and the clamp plate and the ribbon bars in proper position on the uniform.

Other features include clinching selected prongs While the remaining prongs remain unclinched and being thrust through selected portions of a military uniform, a clamp plate, and safety buttons carried by the clamp plate for releasably engaging the prongs thrust through the uniform and a selected area thereof between the sheet and the clamp plate and the ribbon bars on the uniform.

Other features include arranging the indentations in longitudinally spaced rows of transversely spaced indentations so as to enable the device to be used with ribbon bars which vary in length.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a sheet of relatively stiff transparent material having indentations therein embodying one element of this invention;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of a portion of the sheet cut to a selected dimension and showing the ribbon bars ready to be mounted on the sheet by thrusting the prongs thereof through said sheet;

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 of the rear side thereof, showing the bars mounted on the sheet and certain prongs clinched While other prongs extend outwardly from the sheet to be extended through the military uniform;

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the front side of the sheet shown in Figure 3, showing the sheet and bars carried thereby having prongs ready to be thrust through a portion of the military uniform with the clamp plate behind the fragment of the uniform;

Figure 5 is a plan view of the clamp plate;

Figure 6 is an edge view of the clamp plate;

Figure 7 is a transverse sectional view through the clamp plate;

Figure 8 is a longitudinal section view taken substantially on the line 88 of Figure 5;

Figure 9 is a sectional view through a fragment of a uniform, showing the sheet ready to be mounted thereon States Patent 0 2,834,129 Patented May 13, 1958 2 and the clamp plate ready to be connected to the prongs;

Figure 10 is a fragmentary front view of a portion of a uniform showing the sheet and ribbon bars mounted on the uniform; and

Figure 11 is a sectional view taken substantially on the line 11-11 of Figure 10.

Referring to the drawings in detail, a sheet 10 of a relatively stiff transparent material is provided with longitudinally spaced rows of transversely spaced indentations 12 which define guides for receiving and guiding the attaching pins 14 of conventional ribbon bars 16 on which are mounted conventional campaign ribbons. ln mounting the ribbon bars on the sheet 10, the pins or prongs 14 of said bars are placed on the indentations and pressed through the sheet 10, after which the sheet is trimmed as at 18 to conform to the size and shape of the external contours of the assembled ribbon bars. Selected prongs 14 are clinched on the back side of the sheet 10, as illustrated at 14 in Figure 3, while other prongs 14 are permitted to extend through the sheet in perpendicular relation thereto, as will be readily understood upon reference to Figures 3 and 4. It will thus be seen that the ribbon bars 16 will be supported on the transparent sheet 10 in a proper and approved relation.

With the bars 16 properly arranged on the sheet 10, as above described, the prongs 14 which project perpendicularly from the ribbon bars and sheet are passed through selected portions 20 of a portion of a military uniform 22, as suggested in Figure 4, after which a clamp plate, designated generally 24, is engaged with the inner side of the uniform 22 to clamp the uniform between the sheet 10 and the clamp plate.

The clamp plate, above referred to, comprises a base sheet 26 of relatively stiff transparent material and a cover sheet 28 of like material, which sheets are held together by conventional staples 30. The cover sheet 28 is provided at spaced intervals adjacent its perimeter with openings 32 for the reception of the pins 14, and extending through aligned openings 34 in the sheet 26 are safety buttons 36 of conventional form having outstanding flanges 38 which lie between the sheets 26 and 28 to retain the buttons in proper position with relation to the backing plate 24.

In use, it will be evident that the ribbon bars 16 may be mounted on the transparent sheet 10 and certain of said bars may be rigidly fixed thereto by clinching the prongs 14', while the prongs 14 of the other bars project outwardly and are thrust through the uniform 22 and engaged by the safetybuttons 36 to hold the clamp plate 24 against the uniform and the sheet 10 in proper position thereon. Obviously, by removing the safety buttons, the sheet 10 and ribbons can be readily transferred to another uniform when occasion demands.

While in the foregoing there has been shown and described the preferred embodiment of this invention, it is to be understood that minor changes in the details of construction, combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed is:

in a military campaign ribbon bar assembly the combination, with a plurality of spaced, separately formed, horizontally extending, elongated campaign ribbon bars the midlength points of which are in vertical alignment, each bar including a plurality of pins projecting rearwardly therefrom, the pins of each bar being arranged in pairs with the pins of each pair being equidistantly spaced, along a horizontal line, from the vertical line passing through said midlength points, of a holder for supporting the bar upon a military uniform, comprising: a plate having a plurality of indentations arranged in' horizontal rows with a plurality of pairs of indentations in each row,

the indentations of each pair being equidistantly spaced from a vertical line registering with the first line and bisecting the plate, the pins of each pair registering with indentations of pairs of indentations corresponding, with the pairs of pins,.said plate being Qfamaterial' capable ofbeingreadily perforated by the pins for projection of the pins through the indentations rearwardly from said plate, the pins of some of the bars being bent laterally in back of the plateto secure their associated ribbon bars to the.plate,r-the pins of the remaining bars extending straight rearwardly from the plate for passing through the material of the uniform; a clamp plate for positioning in back of the material of said uniform in registration:

withtlie first named plate, said clamp plate having a plurality of openings receivingsaid pins of the remaining pairs of pins; and buttons removably attached' to said remaining pins in back of and bearing against the clamp plate for connecting the clamp plate and the first named plate together with the uniform engaged therebetween, said buttons holding said remaining ribbon bars against the first named plate, and supporting the first named plate and ribbon bars as a unit against the uniform.

References Citedintlifile of this patent UfirrEfi sTArEs PATENTS 106,942 Kirkpatrick: Aug. 30, 1870 1,413,468 Gaunt"- Apr. 18, 1922 1,460Q11'1 Paniko'fi June '26, 1923 1,612,035 Lorenzo Dec. 28, 1926 1,623,693 Logan Apr. 5, 1927 

